Tanpa Name / Anonymous Art Exhibition @ Bank Negara Malaysia Museum and Art Gallery

The Bank Negara Malaysia Museum and Art Gallery is currently holding the Anonymous art exhibition. This show is on until July 8 where it offers a very much needed innovation in the current art scene. Entrance to the gallery is free and it is open daily from Monday to Sunday from 10am to 6pm where the ‘Tanpa Nama’ show is an exciting prospect for anyone who would like to buy affordable art from artists who might just be the next big name.

The exhibition is made up of some of the best students art work who come from 30 of Malaysia’s art schools and you can expect them for less than RM3,000. There are quite a lot to expect in a show like this and one might be inspired by the perception of the next generation of artists who are coming up in the next couple of years.

To be selected by Bank Negara Malaysia’s prestigious gallery would surely be an honour although the names are kept anonymous, as the name implies. An interesting piece would be the ‘Kepupusan’ sculpture which is an elephant made from motorcycle tubes. It puts forth the idea of which object is the main subject matter. Would it be the elephants or the rubber which is in danger of extinction or would it be both?

If you really want to know who the artist is, you will need to buy the artwork because all the artworks that are being displayed are not labeled with the artists’ names. However, you might be glad to know that some 15% of the art here are actually of artists who are quite established so it might be quite a gem if you managed to spot them.

The show is one of the events and efforts of Bank Negara which are undertaken as part of their corporate social responsibilities in the promoting and stimulating of the Malaysian art scene and industry.

The art schools involved in this show are mainly from Klang Valley and Penang while some were sourced from Universiti Sabah and from the east coast from UiTM Kelantan. This is a great effort where the sale of the artwork would fully be channeled to the artists themselves.

Shows like these possess a unique trait where you actually get to appreciate art for art’s sake. Not knowing who the artist beforehand provides you with the environment where you can view an artwork without any pre-conceptions. If you knew who the artist beforehand, it changes your perspective altogether and it will eventually affect how you appreciate the work in the end.

Furthermore, it is a great platform for the artists to kick-start their careers. As starters, the get to enjoy full payment of the art work because the gallery is a government non-profit gallery which is fully focused in the promotion and development of art and culture. Apart from that, the gallery is one of the most prestigious art spaces in the region and to be selected to exhibit their work here would do wonders to their portfolio in the future.